|
|
So the plan this weekend was for me to finish all the work that needed to be done on the new site, and then post a grand opening post over here inviting you all to see the new place!
That didn't exactly happen.
What did happen was errands upon errands, a hockey game, a concert, and a visit to the theater, all crammed packed into three glorious days. So today, rather than an exciting post telling you all about changing bookmarks and reader feeds and fun things like that (which should let you know that soon you'll have to change bookmarks and reader feeds and fun things like that should you desire to continue following me) I'll tell you about my weekend. And you can pretend to care!
Since the economy sucks, and shockingly people aren't spending money on playgrounds right now, my employers have been tightening the belts. Our hours have been reduced, so that I now have every other Friday off not because I work a 9/80 schedule like I used to, but because they can't afford to pay us for a full pay period. I am incredibly thankful to have a job, even if the fact that my job is cutting hours and wages in an attempt to stay in business doesn't exactly have me dancing on tables. But I still get a paycheck twice a month and I'm almost keeping my head above water.
Because of that, I had Friday off, and my plan was to sleep in as long as possible and then go run errands. The gardeners had other plans. At precisely 9am, I was ripped from sleep by a leaf blower being used under my bedroom window. Why must that happen on a Friday morning where there's a good chance that someone is trying to enjoy a three day weekend? Isn't it more likely that people are not home on Wednesday mornings, and that might be a better time for early morning noise? (Before I get called a snob, let's make it clear that I live in an apartment and therefore do not get any say in when or where the gardeners work. I am quite content to sweep my own porch (which is what the blower was crudely being used for) or mow the community lawn outside my living room, if it means I can do so later in the day when I'm already awake.) (Also, before I get a lecture on the temperature being more outdoor labor friendly in the mornings and that's why the noise, let me please point out that the landscape company is on our property ALL DAY. They just happen to start my section in the morning. I'd just rather they wake someone else up, that's all.) So at 9am, I was wide awake and completely unable to get back to sleep. Considering the amount of errands I had to run, I decided I should just get up and get them over with, so I could enjoy a peaceful afternoon nap. After dropping my bedspread at the dry cleaners, exchanging my POS router for a new one, perusing the bookstore for various titles, a supremely yummy bagel sandwich lunch, a quick manicure (my personal indulgence and reward for not biting my nails), and picking up a jersey and hat for Donald, I went back home to try and catch a nap.
That didn't exactly happen, either.
I made the mistake of trying to mess with something that was working just fine, and ended up breaking the entire thing. So I spent my last remaining free hour attempting to fix that, which caused me to be 15 minutes late for meeting Donald at the hockey game. The game, however, was awesome and the Reign won, making me forget that I hadn't slept like I planned. After a fantabulous dinner at Boston's (I highly recommend the pasta with creamy tomato sauce. It's to die for) we headed home and I passed out.
I slept in Saturday and planned on working on the aforementioned new site once I got up. And I did! But not for half as long as I wanted to, and then I was off and running more errands before picking up Donald and heading out to Anaheim to see Reba McEntire perform. Ladies and gents, she is phenomenal. Simply fantastic. She didn't employ her trademark costume changing, but at least she wasn't singing in a bingo hall. Sadly, they don't allow cameras in the Honda Center for certain events (which I think is total crap) so I was unable to document the experience. But I assure you it was unforgettable!
Sunday, Donald and I drove out to LA to see RENTat the Pantages. Second only to Wicked, RENT is the greatest play ever to grace the stage. This is the second time I've seen it in the theater (though I've seen the movie countless times), and it was awesome. Two of the original Broadway cast members are currently reprising their roles, as are two of the final Broadway production cast members. It's a great play with any cast, but these actors make it so much better. It's not your typical theater production, which might be one of the reasons I love it so much. I mean, at one point the audience is asked to moo. Like cows. How many plays does that happen in? The music is great, the story's fantastic, and the characters are people you feel like you know. If you're in the LA area, I wholeheartedly suggest you make time to go see it before it's gone. Actually, it's on tour now, so if it's coming near you, LA or not, you should go see it. I promise you won't be disappointed.
And so there you go. My weekend in a nutshell, and the reason that the new site isn't done yet. It's going to be another busy week for me, but I plan on carving out some time to get the final tweaks done so you can see what I've been working at for so long. Hopefully you'll like it!
I know I said I wouldn’t gripe much about work, but I need some assurance that I’m not completely in the wrong here. (Or, if I am, I need one of you to let me know.).
The boss does a Costco trip every few months and stocks our kitchen with lots of coffee, chips, cookies, crackers, soda, and other snack items. In exchange, we have to drop in 50 cents every time we take something, just to help offset the cost. The exception to the 50 cent rule is coffee. Coffee is supplied for free. I hate coffee with a passion. I don’t like the smell, the taste, or even the look. It’s gross. I also get a little bitter that coffee drinkers get free coffee, but as a soda drinker, I have to pay. It’s not such a big deal that I bitch about it constantly (especially since I haven’t had soda since March 4th) but it’s the principle of it that makes me a little mad.
So, since we have this big fancy kitchen, we each have to take turns cleaning it. We have a schedule of when this is to be done, and what should be done. Wiping down counters, running the dishwasher, cleaning out the coffeemaker, and refilling the fridge with soda. Seems fairly easy right? Except NO ONE ever refills the fridge. Every freaking time I have to clean the kitchen, I have to dump their old coffee, wash out their coffee pot, and rinse out their filter (a great big EWW on that one, by the way) and yet none of the coffee drinkers can ever get their lazy asses to refill the fridge. Even the ones that drink the soda!! I mean, if everyone fills it every day, it should only take a couple seconds. I filled it on my assigned last day before surgery (March 12th or 13th or so). When I went to fill it last Wednesday (April 16th), my first time on kitchen duty since I came back to work, there was no soda in the fridge. None. No one had filled it in a month. I was furious. I know I’m not the only one who drinks soda here (and I don’t even drink it anymore!) so you’d think that someone else would notice it’s empty. Either they didn’t notice, or they noticed and didn’t care. But I think they noticed and didn’t care, as I saw several of them drinking soda after I’d refilled the fridge.
So my complaint is this: Why should I follow the rules and be forced to clean up after coffee drinkers, if they’re not going to do follow the rules and restock the soda? I mean, it’s not like I ask them to rinse out my cans and throw them in the recycle bin. I just ask that they refill the fridge. ESPECIALLY if they’re removing soda from the fridge!
When I started this blog, I decided that I was going to be as honest about my life as possible, but there were a few topics that were going to be off-limits. Work, for example, was something I’d decided not to talk about in specifics, since we have a fairly small office and any griping I did about coworkers would inevitably get back to them. I’m breaking my own rule today, because something wonderful has happened, and I want to share it with you all.
A few weeks ago I was told that I was going to be part of a 3 day Dale Carnegie class that the bosses were sending all our sales reps to. I looked up the class on the Dale Carnegie website, and interpreted it as an Attitude Adjustment Seminar. I was really pissed that they thought I needed an attitude adjustment. (Of course my first reaction should have been perfect evidence as to WHY I was needing an attitude adjustment, but I didn’t see it that way.) At the same time, they asked me to go to the management training seminar being held a couple weeks before the attitude adjustment class. I was boggled. They want me to get an attitude adjustment, and at the same time become management? Huh? It just made no sense to me.
So I went to the management training with 3 bosses and a sales rep. It was interesting, but a lot of what was covered pertained to someone who was actually in management, and I am not. It wasn’t the kind of training you take to be management. It’s more the kind of training you take to become better at what you already do. The class was being taught by Dale Carnegie students, who were studying to be trainers. It was a little rough, and they weren’t that great. But if you had to grade them on enthusiasm, they’d all get A’s. Even if they weren’t the best presenters, they made up for it in being excited about the concepts. Overall, the class wasn’t all that grand, but I at least learned a little from it.
Based on that class, I wasn’t at all looking forward to the next seminar. Especially when I heard that we were going to have to stand up in front of the group and speak. I abhor public speaking. I’d rather ram needles under my fingernails than stand in front of people and speak. Plus, I had to be at work at 8am. Three days in a row. I’m lucky if I’m there by 9, so getting there at 8 was going to be a stretch. I was just OOZING with excitement about this course. No, really.
The course turned out to be one of the greatest things I’ve ever done. I learned different ways of speaking to people, how to listen better, how to remember things easily, and best of all, how to speak in front of people without freaking out. In addition, I learned a ton about the people I’ve been working with for 5+ years. There was lots of getting in front of the group and talking about something you’re passionate about, or acting out a commercial jingle, or telling about a memorable event in your life, but I did it! It sucked, and I hated every second of being up there. But I did it! I was so proud of myself for doing it with no little griping about it. The first time was rough. I felt queasy and shaky and I was sure I was bright red while I was talking. My hands were so shaky that I kept fidgeting with them to try and mask it. I know I talked too fast, but I wanted nothing more than to run back to my seat. By Friday I was much more comfortable. I still spent the whole time wringing my hands, but I didn’t feel flushed or shaky or queasy. I didn’t feel like I did a great job, but everyone else said they saw a huge improvement in my presentations. So either I’m getting better at presenting, or I’m getting better at hiding my fear. Either way works for me.
I’ve tried using the techniques that we learned in the seminar, and so far they’re working. I’m more productive, my personal and business relationships are better, and I’m feeling less stressed. If you ever have the opportunity to take a course of this kind, whether it be through Dale Carnegie, or any other company, I strongly suggest you check it out. It can’t hurt!
While being off work 9 days was wonderful, being back at work is…not. I’m so exhausted. I want nothing more than to go back to being on vacation. It’s not like I was lazy while on vacation, either. I traveled, cleaned, did laundry, saw a play, baked 11 dozen cookies, shopped, bowled, got poked and prodded, and spent time at home with my dog and husband. But man, two days of work have nearly killed me. I love my job, don’t get me wrong. But I didn’t think getting back into the swing of things was going to be so difficult. I had trouble focusing on more than one thing at a time, which is a huge handicap in my line of work. I spent most of the time wanting to be back at home, or for some magical fairy to come and finish all my projects. Neither of which was going to happen. So I keep plugging along, hoping for something to click in my brain, so that I can function again.
Part of my distraction lies in my impending Psychiatric Evaluation tomorrow at UCLA. I know I’ll be fine. They’re basically just evaluating me to make sure I’m fit to make this kind of life changing decision for myself. But I, being the eternal pessimist, am nervous. What if I say the wrong thing, or don’t answer the questions properly? I know I’m freaking out over nothing. Logically, I understand that I am over-analyzing and overreacting and that I should shut the hell up and move on. Emotionally? Hello mess! What’s worse is that I’m going to freak out about it all night, not sleep, and then be a total bear tomorrow. (Ok more bearish than usual, thanks.) Sometimes I wish I had a switch so I could just shut off my brain for a while. (Yes, yes. Wide open door for comments. I’m aware.) At least then I could sleep.
I’m supposed to get the results of all my testing on Thursday. This doesn’t mean I find out if I can be a donor, however. This just means the donation coordinator takes a look at my file and lets me know if anything in there could be a problem. I find out if I need to repeat any tests, or if any tests came back with a positive result. (Positive for negative things, that is.) So that’s a little stressful as well. I’m sure I’ll be fine. I keep telling myself I’m fine. I just wish I’d believe me.
Well Merry Belated Christmas! I had 5 fabulous days off work, and subsequently stayed as far away from a computer as I can get. Ok that’s not altogether true, but I did try to do more people to people things. Like go to the gym, and shop for Christmas presents on Christmas Eve (which I wouldn’t have had to do, had people just told me what the hell they wanted!). I also baked cookies to give away as gifts, bought super cute pre-decorated boxes to put gifts in (since a third grader can wrap presents better than I can) and watched a DVD of Jeff Dunham, one of the funniest ventriloquists I’ve ever seen. Of course, now I can’t stop shouting “Silence! I kill you!” to anyone who gets within 10 feet of me. (Get the DVD. Trust me.)
Christmas went well. We always go to my parent’s house in the morning and open stockings and gifts, and then we drove out to Jason’s aunt’s house to do our gift exchange and have dinner there. Both places were fun in their own way. My family does stockings in a slightly unusual fashion. We get the requisite candy and such, but we also get weird gag gifts. Bungee cords, cigars, anchovies, tire gages, miniature bananas, dog toys, and twist ties have all made an appearance in our stockings over the years. After we’ve pulled out our treasures, we barter and trade for other things. My dad always gets the cigars and anchovies in exchange for some form of candy. My sister trades away anything that isn’t plain chocolate in exchange for pretty much anything else. It’s always a lot of fun to do. We didn’t get to stay long, though, since we had to go out and see Jason’s family too. I was all sorts of domestic, helping his aunt get dinner made and on the table at a reasonable time. I really like his family, so it’s no hardship getting stuck in the kitchen with his mom, grandma and aunt while the menfolk stand around outside. The food is always good. I was proud of myself for not eating the plethora of cookies, and fudge, and other non-diet friendly treats available to me. I even kept my dinner portions pretty small, so I wouldn’t over eat. His mom and aunt both sent us home with a HUGE basket and platter of Christmas cookies, fudge and candy. It’s sitting in the fridge tempting me right now. I’m hoping Jason ate it all while I was at work, though I’m not holding my breath.
Work is very slow right now, which is great. I’ve got a lot of the end of the year work done already. Once that’s complete, I can clean my desk and work more on the company website. Both are things that I’m really not looking forward to, but that my boss has been a bit naggy about. But I deserve it. My desk is in a perpetual state of “Oh-my-hell-a-file-cabinet-exploded!” which works fine for me, but irritates everyone else. The website is coming along much more slowly than I’d thought it would, since I keep getting stuck on how to do new things. I just need to put my nose to the grindstone and push through it. Maybe tomorrow…
I like the fact that Jason has a bar tending job. I also hate the fact that Jason has a bar tending job. I know. Can’t have my cake and eat it too, and other such cliches that make no sense. But this does make sense to me.
Jas loves bar tending. He’s quite the people person and loves to talk. (And talk and talk and talk…) Aside from some of the jackholes that he works with, and some of the cheap bastards he serves, he loves his job. And I’m happy for him. I love my job too, and I’d be pissed as hell if he ever asked me to leave it. But I hate that he works while I’m home. Selfish, I know. But I can’t seem to help it. And I’m quite the bitch about it too. When he tells me he’s only working 2 or 3 days, I get pissy because it mean he’ll be making less money, which means I have to cover more. And on the other hand, when he has to work 6 days, I get pissy because it means I can’t see him. I like having time alone. Watching the tv shows I want to watch, reading quietly with no interruptions, and just having a little me time. But I miss him when he’s not here. Even when I think about how irritating it is when he tries to talk to me while I’m reading my book (the book is NOT made of invisible paper. You can SEE that I’m reading it. SO WHY DO YOU KEEP TALKING?), I would still rather have him home bugging me than have him out at the bar.
Perhaps it’s just my need to have everything just the way I want it. I would love him to have a full time day job so that he made more money, and yet we had evenings to spend together as well. But he doesn’t want a full time day job. He likes his bar tending thing. I suppose I’ll have to live with that.
Vegas, Baby, Vegas!
Yes, Internet, I’m headed to Vegas! Why, you ask? To gamble? To participate in exciting acts of debauchery? To get completely hammered and wake up not knowing where I am? No!
I’m going to Photoshop World!
Let me assure you, I am not joking. I’m super excited about this! I’ve just recently started working on designing a website for my company, and I’m in over my head. I’m trudging through the madness that is Dreamweaver CS3 and Photoshop CS2 and I have no clue as to what I’m doing. I’ve tried some online tutorials, and they’re helping a little. But a lot of them are written in a dialect of geek that I just don’t speak. I’m told that this conference/expo will be a fantastic learning experience. There are SO many workshops I want to go to, and a lot of them are schedule against each other. I’ll have to figure out some way of cloning myself before I get there, so I can see everything!
As a bonus, my sister is coming out Friday night, and will hang out with me until Sunday when we drive back. My friends Tony and Kerry will be out there as well, so I’ll hook up with them at some point too. It’s been a long time since I’ve been to Vegas, and I’m looking forward to going back. I’ve never stayed at Excalibur before, so this will be a treat. Think they’ll let me have a room in a turret, so I can pretend to be a princess?
I love my job. Truly. I don’t ever think I will find a better group of people to work for. (Work WITH is a totally different subject.) However, as much as I love this job, there are just some days where I have absolutely no motivation to get things done.
Today is that day!
I have lots to do, and I’ve started on almost all of it! It’s the finishing part that I’m just not getting done. I have, no exaggeration, 11 projects on my desktop that are opened and partially finished. I’m having an attack of the ADD that causes me not to finish anything. And sadly, I care not. Part of it is because I know I will be in here this weekend working on cleaning up files and my desk (apparently the File Cabinet Exploded All Over My Desk look is out this summer. Who knew?) and the other part is that I’m tired. There are few people in this office that work very hard. I am one of them, because I do love this place, and I want them to keep me around for a long time. But I get tired of working hard when others don’t. So, I’m taking a little mental vacation. Planning dinner for tonight, organizing the work stuffs I will complete over the weekend, and surfing the Internet for random useless things that I cannot afford to buy, but love to look at.
Happy Friday!
|
|